The William H. Natcher Bridge is a

cable-stayed bridge A cable-stayed bridge has one or more ''towers'' (or ''pylons''), from which cables support the bridge deck. A distinctive feature are the cables or stays, which run directly from the tower to the deck, normally forming a fan-like pattern o ...

that carries

U.S. Highway 231 U.S. Route 231 (US 231) is a north-south United States Numbered Highway System, U.S highway that is a parallel route of U.S. Route 31, US 31. It runs for from St. John, Indiana, St. John, Indiana, at U.S. Route 41 in Indiana, US 41 ...

over the

Ohio River The Ohio River is a long river in the United States. It is located at the boundary of the Midwestern and Southern United States, flowing southwesterly from western Pennsylvania to its mouth on the Mississippi River at the southern tip of Illino ...

. The bridge connects

Owensboro, Kentucky Owensboro is a home rule-class city in and the county seat of Daviess County, Kentucky, United States. It is the fourth-largest city in the state by population. Owensboro is located on U.S. Route 60 and Interstate 165 about southwest of Lou ...

Rockport, Indiana Rockport is a city in Ohio Township and the county seat of Spencer County, Indiana, along the Ohio River. The population was 2,270 at the 2010 census. Once the largest community in Spencer County, the city has recently been surpassed by the t ...

and opened on October 21, 2002. It is named in honor of

William Huston Natcher William Huston Natcher (September 11, 1909 – March 29, 1994) was a Democratic congressman, serving in the United States House of Representatives from 1953 until his death from heart failure in Bethesda, Maryland in 1994. He is the second lo ...

, a former

United States Representative The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they ...

who served Kentucky's 2nd Congressional District from 1954 until his death in 1994. The bridge project was named for Natcher only three months before his death. It is owned by the

Commonwealth of Kentucky Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia to ...

and was commissioned by the

Kentucky Transportation Cabinet The Kentucky Transportation Cabinet (KYTC) is Kentucky's state-funded agency charged with building and maintaining federal highways and Kentucky state highways, as well as regulating other transportation related issues. The Transportation Cabi ...

, in cooperation with the

Indiana Department of Transportation The Indiana Department of Transportation (INDOT) is a governmental agency of the U.S. state of Indiana charged with maintaining and regulating transportation and transportation related infrastructure such as state owned airports, List of numbered ...

and the

Federal Highway Administration The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) is a division of the United States Department of Transportation that specializes in highway transportation. The agency's major activities are grouped into two programs, the Federal-aid Highway Program a ...

Specifications

The William H. Natcher Bridge is in length (including its approaches) and wide. It is supported by cables connected to two identical diamond-shaped towers, each tall. At the time of its construction, it was the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

' longest cable-supported bridge over an inland waterway.

Construction

The concept for a new bridge to serve Owensboro dates back to 1987, when a Green River Area Development District study recommended a new bridge to connect to U.S. Highway 231 in Rockport, where the highway separated from

Indiana State Road 66 State Road 66 is an east–west highway in six counties in the southernmost portion of the U.S. state of Indiana. Route description State Road 66 begins at the eastern end of a toll bridge over the Wabash River in New Harmony and ends at U. ...

mere feet away from the river's bank. Congressman Natcher first began seeking federal funds for the new bridge in 1988. Construction ran across the late 1990s and early 2000s at a cost of US$70 million (approximately $40 million from federal sources, $30 million from state sources). Originally slated for a 1996 completion, the bridge was the victim of numerous funding delays from both the federal and state levels. Though the concrete

pier image:Brighton Pier, Brighton, East Sussex, England-2Oct2011 (1).jpg, Seaside pleasure pier in Brighton, England. The first seaside piers were built in England in the early 19th century. A pier is a raised structure that rises above a body of ...

s (the bases which support the upright towers) were installed in 1995, construction on the bridge itself did not begin until 1998. Even then, the original plan was to have the bridge completed by the end of 2000, but the builders said that goal was unrealistic due to the complicated nature of the cable installation. It was finally dedicated on August 16, 2002, but did not open to traffic until October 21, 2002. The Natcher Bridge was designed by Parsons, Brinckerhoff, Quade & Douglas, Inc. and built by Traylor Brothers of

Evansville Evansville is a city in, and the county seat of, Vanderburgh County, Indiana, United States. The population was 118,414 at the 2020 census, making it the state's third-most populous city after Indianapolis and Fort Wayne, the largest city in S ...

Reasons for building

The bridge was constructed for two reasons: to relieve traffic congestion on the aging

Owensboro Bridge The Owensboro Bridge is a continuous truss bridge that spans the Ohio River between Owensboro, Kentucky and Spencer County, Indiana. Dedicated to the memory of the late U.S. Congressman Glover H. Cary (1885–1936) and often called the "Glover ...

in downtown Owensboro (approximately 6 miles downstream from the Natcher Bridge), and as part of a larger project to make U.S. Highway 231 a four-lane road between Owensboro and

Interstate 64 Interstate 64 (I-64) is an east–west Interstate Highway in the Eastern United States. Its western terminus is at I-70, U.S. Route 40 (US 40), and US 61 in Wentzville, Missouri. Its eastern terminus is at an interchange w ...

near

Dale, Indiana Dale is a town in Carter Township, Spencer County, in the U.S. state of Indiana. The population was 1,593 at the 2010 census. History Dale was originally called Elizabeth, and under the latter name was laid out in 1843. When a post office was e ...

. The U.S. 231 connection to I-64 in Indiana fully opened to traffic on March 15, 2011.

Effects of bridge

A new four-lane expressway, from U.S. Route 60 near Owensboro to the Natcher Bridge was constructed. Upon the completion of the bridge,

U.S. Route 231 U.S. Route 231 (US 231) is a north-south United States Numbered Highway System, U.S highway that is a parallel route of U.S. Route 31, US 31. It runs for from St. John, Indiana, St. John, Indiana, at U.S. Route 41 in Indiana, US 41 ...

was rerouted onto the new four-lane highway and around

in the city of

Owensboro Owensboro is a home rule-class city in and the county seat of Daviess County, Kentucky, United States. It is the fourth-largest city in the state by population. Owensboro is located on U.S. Route 60 and Interstate 165 about southwest of Lou ...

was renumbered to

Kentucky Route 2155 Kentucky Route 2155 (KY 2155) is an urban secondary north–south state highway located entirely in Owensboro in northwest Kentucky. Route description KY 2155 begins at an interchange with Wendell H. Ford Expressway ( U.S. Route 60, US 6 ...

and in

Indiana Indiana () is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. It is the 38th-largest by area and the 17th-most populous of the 50 States. Its capital and largest city is Indianapolis. Indiana was admitted to the United States as the 19th s ...

from the old

to the Indiana four-lane expressway approach, old

was renumbered to State Road 161. In 2014, the

extended the

US 60 U.S. Route 60 is a major east–west United States highway, traveling from southwestern Arizona to the Atlantic Ocean coast in Virginia. The highway's eastern terminus is in Virginia Beach, Virginia, where it is known as Pacific Avenue, in the ...

By-Pass (also known as the Wendell H. Ford Expressway) eastward from just north of the

Kentucky Route 54 Kentucky Route 54 (KY 54) is a state highway in the U.S. state of Kentucky. Route Description The highway, which begins at the intersection of Frederica Street and Parrish Avenue in Owensboro, which is also its junction with Kentucky Route 81 ...

interchange to the junction of U.S. 60/231 and

Kentucky Route 2830 Kentucky Route 2830 (KY 2830) is a two-lane, largely rural highway in northeastern Daviess County, Kentucky. The southern terminus is at KY 144 and the northern terminus is at KY 334. The road serves the community of Maceo. Route descri ...

between Owensboro and

Maceo, Kentucky Maceo is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) in Daviess County, Kentucky, United States. As of the 2010 census, it had a population of 413. The community was founded by freed slaves just after the U.S. Civil War. In ...

. This project, in tandem with the Natcher Bridge and Indiana's expansion of U.S. 231 to four lanes from the Ohio River to

, will create an almost non-stop, high-speed route from I-64 near

Interstate 65 Interstate 65 (I-65) is a major north–south Interstate Highway in the central United States. As with most primary Interstates ending in 5, it is a major crosscountry, north–south route, connecting between the Great Lakes and the Gulf ...

Bowling Green, Kentucky Bowling Green is a home rule-class city and the county seat of Warren County, Kentucky, United States. Founded by pioneers in 1798, Bowling Green was the provisional capital of Confederate Kentucky during the American Civil War. As of the 2 ...

, allowing a bypass of

Louisville, Kentucky Louisville ( , , ) is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky and the 28th most-populous city in the United States. Louisville is the historical seat and, since 2003, the nominal seat of Jefferson County, on the Indiana border ...

External links

William H. Natcher Bridge
at Bridges & Tunnels
William H. Natcher Bridge
at KentuckyRoads.com
William H. Natcher Bridge
at Parsons Brinckerhoff, bridge designer *
Natcher Bridge Images
KentuckyRoads.com {{DEFAULTSORT:Natcher Cable-stayed bridges in the United States Bridges completed in 2002 Buildings and structures in Owensboro, Kentucky Transportation buildings and structures in Spencer County, Indiana Bridges over the Ohio River Road bridges in Indiana Road bridges in Kentucky U.S. Route 231 Bridges of the United States Numbered Highway System 2002 establishments in Indiana 2002 establishments in Kentucky Transportation in Daviess County, Kentucky

Specifications

Construction

Reasons for building

Effects of bridge

See also

External links